10 Notorious Motorcycle Gangs

With around 300 members and 24 chapters, the Vagos Motorcycle Club is one of the most formidable gangs on the West Coast of the United States [source: U.S. Office of the Attorney General]. Wearing the symbol of the Norse god of mischief, Loki, Vagos have been engaged in a long, bloody turf war with the Hells Angels members in California [source: McDonald]. They also have operations in Hawaii, and along the U.S.-Mexico border. According to U.S. law enforcement, Vagos MC works with chapters in Mexico to smuggle drugs back and forth to the United States [source: U.S. Office of the Attorney General].

Like most of the other 1 percenter clubs, Vagos was founded in the 1960s [source: Dulaney]. The gang has become increasingly violent in later years, though. In 2009, a former president of the club's San Bernadino, Calif. chapter was put on trial for murder after allegedly ordering club members to drive a man to the dessert and kill him. The reason? The two men disagreed over the price of a bike [source: Cruz]. In another crime, a Vagos member broke into a home, stole the homeowner's money and some drugs, and then shot him in the head [source: Cruz].